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You are welcome to apply any part of this article to your own personal use. Please do NOT publish any part of the article or apply any part of it to any non-personal use without the express written concent of the author.
The weather gods weren't cooperative. For much of this cruise the winds have been either light to non-existent, or were on the nose. The trip from Chesapeake City to Baltimore again saw the iron stays'l in service. We've burned more fuel on this trip than we did on the 1½ years in the Caribbean, and we've still got a couple of months to go.
The Inner Harbor of Baltimore is almost fifteen nautical miles up the Patapsco River, a good half-day's travel off the main path down the Chesapeake Bay. A number of sailors we've talked to have that town on their "Don't Miss" lists, so we decided to include it on our journey.
We wanted to anchor in the small area reserved for such activity but had difficulty locating it. As it turned out the city wasn't allowing the anchorage to be used, probably for security reasons. The wharf right next to the anchorage is the home of the Constellation, a sister ship to the Constitution ("Old Ironsides") and famous in her own right. Baltimore's version of the World Trade Center is right on the bulkhead at the anchorage. In light of the attacks on the WTC in New York, one can easily envision why Baltimore might be a bit nervous.
The Inner Harbor has been the object of redevelopment in recent years, and the results are quite pleasing for the water-born tourist. But once more than a few blocks beyond the harbor, inner-city scenes are of a more typical nature. One nice thing we did notice was the friendliness of the townsfolk. Unusual in inner cities was the number of people who acknowledged our presence with a bright smile. Many even said hello to us as we passed by. I found it quite charming.
We spent a day afoot, being tourists. We went as far as Baltimore's Washington Monument, designed by the same architect that did the more famous one in our nation's capitol. We also visited a local museum focusing on Baltimore's history, including its maritime history. All in all it was a very enjoyable day.
That evening we had friends for dinner aboard Volant. Oscar and Morgan were one-time neighbors in Ft. Lauderdale and have recently moved to the area. Chef Katherine, as usual, prepared a fabulous feast. It was really joyful to reconnect with such good friends.
Our trip to Annapolis, Maryland, was another motor marathon. After going out the Patapsco River, we headed down the Chesapeake Bay to the Severn River then turned and headed upstream a couple of miles up to Annapolis.
We had difficulty setting the hook just off the U.S. Naval Academy. The water was nearly thirty feet (nine meters) deep there, requiring a lot of chain to be laid out. We tried twice with the same result. The bottom was so soft that we merely plowed the anchor through the muck when we backed down. As the weather forecast called for winds upwards of twenty knots we didn't feel secure enough to stay there. So we tried another spot. This time we were just outside Spa Creek a few hundred yards away. The water was shallower and the anchor set solidly on the first try.
Annapolis is a delightful town, a walker's paradise. The city boasts a number of historical buildings and museums along with really embracing the presence of the Naval Academy. The Academy is home to about four thousand "midshipmen" (known locally as "mids"). Apparently there's a program where local people "adopt" a mid. Some adopt several. An adopted mid goes to his/her host home on many weekends, just as if it was their own.
Ron and Colette, friends from our sailing club in Ft. Lauderdale, have been living in Annapolis for the last several years. We took the water taxi to the city docks and met them for an early evening stroll about town. We always appreciate receiving local knowledge of an area and they did an outstanding job of providing it.
The next day was spent being tourists, with Ron and Colette leading the way. Our focus was on the Naval Academy. There we paid our respects at the crypt of John Paul Jones, considered the father of the U.S. Navy. We also spent some time at the Academy's museum, home to a marvelous collection of exquisite ship models. While our friends attended to some midafternoon business, Kit and I took a very informative minibus tour of the town proper. The State House where the Maryland Legislature sits is the oldest building in the country built for and continuously used as a legislative house. It was in that building that George Washington resigned as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army at the end of the War of American Independence. It was also where the Treaty of Paris ending that same war was ratified by the Congress of a new American nation. We finished off that wonderful day with a dinner at Ron and Colette's home.
Normally October is the best month to cruise the Chesapeake Bay. But this year the weather is turning cool unseasonably early. Here it is at the end of September and a cold north wind is blowing hard, the fault of two low-pressure systems out in the Atlantic. With the cold weather comes an impetus to get the boat's forced-air heater working. It'll run for about three or four minutes at a time and then turn itself off. Our particular heater can be serviced In the Annapolis area. The service center also has a good refrigeration mechanic who can address the problem with our engine-drive system. For convenience we decide to move Volant around to a marina in the South River on the other side of the peninsula. The marina is just across the street from the service center. So on Sunday morning we raised the anchor and headed out.
We were pretty protected while in the Severn River. But once out into the open Chesapeake Bay, the conditions were nasty. We only had about seven nautical miles to go down the Bay before gaining the protection of the South River. What a ride we had for that seven miles! That wind was COLD! And it didn't help that it was blowing in the range of twenty knots and more, gusting as high as thirty. And it didn't help that the wind churned up seas in the four foot (1.2 meter) range every four seconds. Talk about rock 'n' roll… But at least we weren't out in the Atlantic. Along the coast they were experiencing seas in the twelve foot (4 meter) range and at nearly the same frequency, higher seas offshore.
I spent the entire time hand-steering the boat from the cockpit. Although I was dressed warmly in long johns, several shirts, sweaters, ski jacket and watch cap I was quite chilled by the time we got into the marina. It took Chef Katherine's wonderful Peanut Butter Pasta and a Hot Chocolate Volant (hot chocolate with a couple of jiggers of black rum) to warm me up again.
We're scheduled for the work on Wednesday. If they manage to free up some time before then we're close enough that the technicians can just hop over to look. So we'll be spending a lot of time over the next several days just hanging around and doing catch-up boat chores.
This cold front is forecast to be gone in the latter part of the week. If that forecast holds and if the repairs are completed accordingly, we should have great sailing and cruising as we work our way down the Bay to our next destination.
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